Unshakable Things

Welcome to Have You Not Read, a podcast seeking to answer questions from the text of Scripture for the honor of Christ and the edification of the Saints. Before we dig into our topic, we humbly ask you to rate, review, and share the.

Podcast. Thank you. I'm Dylan Hamilton and with me are Michael Durham and Andrew Hudson. Today we're going to set up our question by giving a little bit of framing before we start. Michael, would you go ahead and do that for us?

Living Faithfully in Unstable Times

Yeah, I.

Think this is a question, Dylan, that you've asked a while back and we're going to kind of work on it a bit in this episode, but I think it's a question that a lot of people have in a broad spectrum. How do we live faithfully in the now and truly take up our responsibilities and the work that the Lord has set before us and to do that well in a wise way given the instability of our times and the anxiety that we sometimes have about the future?

I mean, considering the trajectory of things, I mean, anybody who has any wisdom is going to say things are not good right now and they're accelerating into further chaos and problems. So given that, what significance does my work and labor and efforts now have in light of the problems that we are looking at?

Okay, so.

In 2022 I submitted a question to the website. It reads, I'm a young adult believer. I rest in God's sovereignty for the future and I realize he is shaking up those things with faulty foundations, which brings me to the unshakable.

Having taken the advice to invest myself in very shakable institutions and enterprises like a college degree, real estate, and a job that produces very little, if any good, I hear preaching on unshakable things from men I greatly respect, but when asked practical questions about how to navigate the shake-up, many of the same men point back to practical advice that worked before the shake-up, those things like college degrees, real estate, etc.

What direction does the Bible give us in times of shake-ups that we can leverage to not just see our family through, but thriving on the other side? And I'd like to add to that question, and we talked about this beforehand, also how does my responsibilities as a husband and as a father going into these shake-ups and beyond, how should I be training myself in responsibilities now in order to.

Fulfill those roles faithfully in the future? Good question, and generally when we consider some of these large and complicated quandaries, we have to begin with what's the most basic and build out from there.

It's sort of like if a pilot is flying and they're in the middle of a storm or in the middle of fog or something like that, they're just going to have to rely on their instruments and pay attention to that.

And so in times like these, and I don't think that they're unique just to our generation, there have been many terrible, terrible times in the history of our world and living in times of disruption. Are you talking like they're uniquely general, as in like there are unique things that happen throughout history?

Sure, but they are the things that happen throughout history. Yeah, and they, you know, they're the most important times anyone has ever lived in because I live in them, you know, and that's not the, that's not the truth of it though.

Right. You know, I've got to begin to think about how my life is supposed to operate, how I'm supposed to prioritize, what I'm supposed to do in, not in light of the times necessarily. The times are important, I understand, in the times in which I live, but in light of the eternal God who made me in his image.

So, and I think Dylan you mentioned things about relationships and so on, and so the times aren't going to change the fact that I'm made in God's image. Totally. Yeah, so I'm still going to need to organize my life in the fear of the Lord before the face of God.

I need to be loving him supremely, loving others rightly, beginning with my wife and children and, you know, church family and so on and so forth. I love God supremely, love others rightly, steward everything that God has entrusted to me in the most wise fashion possible and that's going to be the general framework.

That hasn't changed. I mean, that didn't even change after the fall. That was still there after the flood. You talk about a transition, you talk about a time of chaos and transition, God comes right back to the creation mandate about how we're supposed to operate to fill the earth with his glory and that's just going to be there no matter what.

So, that's going to help me with a general framework and I can begin to meditate upon the Word of God and how it relates to my life and begin to make some connections and that's going to give me some guidance right away.

And then also you find examples in the scripture about what God would say to his people in difficult times. How are they supposed to respond? And in general it's going to be a combination of thinking of the Lord and thinking of how to treat each other and how to take care of the things that God has given them.

So, for example, in Jeremiah 29, the people of Israel who were exiled to Babylon did not want to stay in Babylon. They hated Babylon. They loathed their captors. All they talked about was getting back home.

They wanted to talk about the impermanence of their situation. They wanted to think in terms of, you know, even though I was brought here ten years ago, I am 100 going to go back there and we're going to restart and this is their entire mindset.

But in fact, they're going to be there for a long time. And that was difficult. And what did God tell to Jeremiah to tell them? Stop listening to the false prophets who want to, like, you know, tell you what you want to hear.

Smooth things, baby. Nothing but that. Yes. So instead, this is the Word of the Lord to those people in their difficult period. Jeremiah 29 verse 5. Build houses and dwell on them. Plant gardens and eat their fruit.

Take wives and beget sons and daughters and take wives for your sons and give your daughters two husbands that they may bear sons and daughters that you may be increased there and not diminished. Now, when you think about a people in captivity, they tend to diminish.

But if God is with them, if God blesses them, then what happens to a people in captivity? Well, they increase. Think about the children of Israel and Egypt. Yeah. And think about how many, how they multiplied even in Babylon.

And then not only that, he says in verse 7, and seek the peace, seek the shalom of the city where I have carried you to be carried away, caused you to be carried away captive and pray to the Lord for it.

For in its peace you will have peace. And then he goes on to warn them about the false prophets who would tell them something different. So in this, you have, in verse 7, recognizing the Lord's sovereignty and praying to him, recognizing that everything depends upon him, blessing and giving peace.

Because in its peace you will have peace. So there's the loving God supremely. Verse 6 is all about loving others rightly and increasing your families. And verse 5 is about proper administration of the, what's been entrusted to them.

And they were greatly diminished. They used to have a whole land. Now they just have houses and gardens. Forgive me for interrupting here,.

But some of this is kind of a reiteration of what happened in Genesis with a house dwelt outside Eden. Is that what you're saying? No, no, no. He's actually telling them to dwell in gardens here, to plant gardens, to beget sons and daughters.

Is this sort of a poetic reiteration of those commands? It almost seems kind of comical because if you're in captivity you're not thinking Eden. But he is.

Talking about thrival. Right. Yeah. We're never going to find ourselves in a situation so bad that we've been flung out of the orbit of the image of God. This is who he has made us to be. And so these principles are just going to be there no matter where we're at.

Because God is our maker. He is our creator. We've been made to image him forth to bring him glory. And it's not some sort of secret Gnostic sauce about how to do that. So in this particular bad situation they're to pray for the prosperity and peace and productivity of their oppressors.

Okay. That's hard. That is really, really hard. I don't want to do that. Now in the path of things God may break the jaw of the oppressors. He may put them down into the ground. He may make them eat grass for seven years.

But over time what are we praying for? We're praying that they would be right with God. That they would be humbled before God and that things would progress in a way that God is just undeniable in this situation.

And there's gonna be tough times through that. So I think given the day and age in which we live, our fears and our anxieties are filled with more information than in previous generations. Without a doubt.

But I don't think they're necessarily filled with more understanding. You're saying like blind irrational fears of the past versus maybe feeling more informed about these are actual fears that hold some weight.

Yes. But really do they hold weight? So if you were living in maybe the 1300s, the fears and anxieties which may make you feel when you're in the field doing your work and labor, oh this could all just be wiped out, you know, tomorrow.

Who knows what could happen? Sure. And that that could be very discouraging versus somebody today who is filled with all manner of factoids about all the different possibilities that but we're not really improved.

We haven't really improved the situation at all by replacing the unknown with factoids that we don't even know if they actually cohere into something plausible. It could really be the propaganda of a poster about electrification of the United States bringing about a great evil.

That was a funny poster we looked at the other day. Yeah. It was called an unrestrained demon and it was a scare tactic to say you don't want electricity running through the streets and killing everybody.

So fear it. Yes. Yeah. So that's where we have to remember the Bible says the fear of death is slavery. Fear of man is a snare. But how much does the Bible say about the fear of the Lord? Oh it's life and health to the bones.

It delivers us from all manner of problems. It's the beginning of wisdom and knowledge and understanding. And so when we're thinking of God, oh I'm made in his image. Oh this is who I'm to be. So this I think sets the major framework for what we're supposed to be about.

And I think some of the things Dylan that you you mentioned in your question I think deals more with the tactics than the strategy. So the strategy is living in the image of God. You know do all these things.

Now the tactics may change based on your situation. It may not be best to send our children to a four-year institution, saddle them with loads of debt, and then mention to them that I'll be spending all of my retirement on me.

And we also expect grandchildren by the way. See ya. Now that isn't something like a very sound tactic to match the strategy of being made in God's image to glorify him through every avenue of our lives.

So we have to evaluate the tactics. You know does this fit? Now sometimes some of the tactics that are available to us are not the ones we would prefer. So we would prefer something big. We would prefer something impressive.

We would prefer something dramatic that would really just catapult us forward in the work that is set before us. Sometimes that's not available. I believe there will be moments like that from time to time in a person's life.

But I think for the most part we're talking about small incremental growth like leaving in a lump, small things just growing over time. And we can't despise the small things of loving our wives, disciplining our children, and making what improvements we can.

You know preparing for things like in any given generation we should be prepared for a famine. In any given generation we should be prepared for a storm. Those are things to think about. But we shouldn't live in fear, constant fear of that happening.

But we should be prepared. Go to the aunt you sluggard, consider her ways and be wise. She doesn't have to have a taskmaster cracking the whip and telling her what to do. She just does it on her own. Wow look at that.

Hey that's that's something that we should think about. We should there's a tactic right there. I should be writing down here are some things that I can do to better maximize how I worship God, how I love my family and love others, how I manage that which God has entrusted to me.

And over time where we end up is not where we were by the grace of God. But they're not they're not big things. They're small things. Sometimes looking at the end of the problem and looking at a goal state you can start to work backwards right.

Like okay well if I want to get the Z that means I had to do Y and X and okay well the next step there might be a logical conclusion for today. The next step is you know waking up an hour earlier because I want to study the word before I do this thing.

I this question I know it's not directly related but when I think about what God has done how many times in the scriptures were we reminded and I say we were the people of God reminded of what God had done in the past for them.

You know as his people not that they deserved it but that he was their God and they were his people. Think about you know how many times they people rebelled against Moses rebelled against God and the reminder of all the things that God has done for them and I think about the promised land and I think about Joshua's admonition to know you know like today the faithfulness is throwing away your idols and let's go.

You know we're gonna we're gonna serve the me my whole household we're gonna serve the Lord you know let's put away your idols and let's go do this. I think the temptation really is there are giants in the land.

Or there's a lion in the streets. Yeah that one. And I'm not trying to make it seem like we're the ones who are going into the promised land to conquer but I think the temptation is to see adversity and go back to something you're comfortable with.

So maybe there's some thing that you're comfortable with that just needs to go and that's what today's faithfulness.

Was all about right? Going back to the question kind of I was originally asked and I'm glad you mentioned worship earlier because I do think all these things worship out or flow out from worship. Worship's first and all these things.

I think we get that precedent from Genesis and how creation is logically stepped out and then what we are to do as men made created in the image of God. I think back to the question though is I think we have actually been pretty good.

The men that I'm talking about in pulpits or giving advice on conference stages and stuff like that I actually think they've been pretty good at pointing out the principles like we've kind of been talking about and pointing out the posture you should have toward all these things and asking for the Lord must bless these things and then their practical advice on the backside doesn't match it.

Okay so when they're saying.

The water's poison but they're still drinking the water. I wouldn't say.

Necessarily that far. I think they don't know what's poisoned. I don't think they're trying to sell you something that's necessarily bad and they know it. I think sometimes there are polluted areas where you can have wealth quickly especially if you have the right credit score and you can't have an expansion in wealth that I view in certain areas as principally wrong or ethically wrong and they're not seeing it and so and not having many men in the church that understand those things how their practical advice is playing out or it's ethically an issue that may be more toward how and I as an individual now who might see these things.

How do I navigate that. And we were talking about incentives earlier. How do I navigate that when the incentives are actually.

Driving me. Yeah perverse incentives. Yeah. So I think there's going to have to be some degree of re-evaluation of what is value, what is worthwhile, what is going to retain value over long periods of time and in a reassessment of you know not just accepting what is generally thought of as valuable and good but identifying with biblical principles that which is truly valuable long lasting.

And I'm not talking about you know just you know treasure stored up in heaven and so on. I'm talking about the fully orbed Christian life that there are things that are truly valuable and worthwhile. And the Lord wants us to to be about those things and invest in those things.

All these things matter to the Lord. So we have to I think first of all identify those things clearly. What are those things. And then recognize that the Lord abhors you know faulty measures unjust weights and so on and so forth.

He's not for mobs corrupting justice you know. He's not for bribes all those things. So we're not going to take avenues that are full of corruption and sin. Okay but I do want to pursue that which is which is good I know is is biblically valuable.

And then you have to begin to identify what ways do I pursue that. What ways has God made available. What are those avenues. What are those paths. So to me there has to be biblical meditation on it. You know biblical brainstorming.

We're gonna get our categories right. We're gonna get our qualifiers right. And then we're gonna get our options right. And then we're gonna start pursuing those things. Now the the way in which this man with his set of talents and in his opportunities that is different than this man over here.

And God genuinely loves that kind of diversity. Just look at his creation look at all the various ways in which he is he has made. We don't have to do everything exactly the same way for the actual particulars every you know people like saying you know just plug and play this scheme.

And here comes one side of life. Yeah sure that's nice. And actually how it works it has to be done with a dependence upon the Lord concerning the providences that he has brought uniquely into our lives.

Sometimes we resist that sometimes it's I don't want these providences in my life because that person over there they're profit. If I had their providences if I had what God gave to them I could do so much more.

Yes. So this puts us out of sorts with the Lord. That's just yeah one of the most important things we don't blame God. Matthew 25 verse 14. For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.

And to one he gave five talents into another two and another one to each according to his own ability. So he knows the ability. And so he entrusted them accordingly. And immediately he went on a journey.

Then he who received the five talents went and traded with them and made another five talents. Now we're not told exactly what he did you know. But he he did it. And then likewise he who had received to gained two more also ostensibly it would be a whole different pattern than what the other guy did you know.

But he who had received one went and dug in the ground and hid his Lord's money. So after a long time the Lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them. You like how Jesus is dealing with the financials of this you know.

So he had received the five talents came and brought five other talents saying Lord you delivered to me five talents. Look I have gained five more talents besides them. Lord said to him well done good and faithful servant you were faithful over a few things I'll make you ruler over many things enter into the joy of your Lord.

And then Luke's version in Luke 12 he gives him like cities like ten cities to rule. You know verse 22. He also who had received two talents came and said Lord you delivered to me two talents. Look I have gained two more talents besides them.

His Lord said well done good and faithful servant you've been faithful a few things I will make you ruler over many things enter into the joy of the Lord. Then he who had received the one talent came and said Lord I knew you to be a hard man reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.

And I was afraid and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look there you have what is yours. But his Lord answered and said to him you wicked and lazy servant you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed.

So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has ten talents. For to everyone who has more will be given and he will have abundance.

But from him who does not have even what he has will be taken away and cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. They'll be weeping and gnashing of teeth. So Jesus telling this parable is when he ascended to heaven he has all authority in heaven on earth.

And everybody who is made in God's image is accountable to to the Son of Man to the second Adam he rules over all. And so he's the one who distributes to all because all has been given to him. So whatever we have we have from the hand of our good King Jesus.

So now what do we do with it. You know. And Jesus tells the the one who hated him the one who accused him the one who shook his fist at him he says you could have at least you know deposited what I gave you with the bankers.

And there would have been more you know there would have been interest. You didn't do didn't cost him anything. But just let them have the money to go do some money changing with it. Exactly and so but the same amount of effort is bearing it.

Right. But he did he did the thing that would be the the least profitable. Yeah the the most rebellious thing possible with this with his funds because he did not give thought good thought to his master.

Right. So we think about we think about our King. Let's think about our Lord. Let's think about his generosity and his blessings and all these things that he has given to us. He's entrusted to us according to our ability.

So at once we were reminded of his grace because he didn't have to give us anything. We're also reminded of our responsibility because he did take note of our ability. And he's entrusted these things to us.

Okay. What you gonna do. Yeah. Wow. It's so wide open you know. So what I want to be doing is what I want to be taking whatever God has entrusted to me whatever that is as one made in his image. And I want to be magnifying that maximizing that making more of Christ through that whatever that is because you know that's what he desires of me.

So how do I do that. And doesn't always. It doesn't look like the way that my retirement advisor tells me I should do it. It doesn't look like the way that my tax guy is telling me it should look like they don't know.

Right. But I need to hear the word of the Lord the will of my Lord and say all right. Here's how I can maximize this house. Here's how I can maximize that. And whatever I've been given that's what I need to be working with you know.

And it may seem small in comparison to the experiences of other generations the experiences of other people with different amounts and opportunities. But I'm not to compare myself amongst amongst ourselves.

I have a master I have a king. He's given me this. What will I do for him with this one question that kind of comes to mind.

Is maybe you have a young man who doesn't recognize how many talents he's got. If you like say Bing comes you or one of your sons comes to you and they're they're looking for that sort of counsel. And even if what have you got a an older guy in the congregation who maybe you know but between 35 to 45 and they're they haven't got out of that rut yet and they still don't know and they're looking for counsel and they can't get it anywhere else.

How are you counseling.

That individual especially tactically. Yeah so tactically to get there he needs to know what he has. Right. So like if you're sitting at a chessboard every once while you get you know you're asked to look at a chess puzzle and you're looking at the situation you see all the pieces in.

It's the middle of a game and they want you to find the best move. Right. If you don't know how to take inventory of that position and see how everything is relating you're gonna have no idea what the best move is gonna be.

And one of the things to do is to help someone take inventory of where they're at. So they know you know what is what what is there in potential. One of the best ways to do that is by Thanksgiving. Right.

To coach and disciple and to train someone to be thankful is a way of taking stock of all the blessings that have been entrusted to me. Right. When you counting them naming them one by one. Yeah. Well yes like like the hymn says.

But we were reminded in first Thessalonians that we are doing and everything give thanks. Which reminds us that Thanksgiving is a something of a spiritual discipline that it's something that we are to take accounting of everything and give thanks for all of that every time you give thanks for everything that is in everything you're just highlighting that highlighting this highlighting that highlighting this by thanking the Lord for it.

And then you are better aware of the situation that you're in. Okay so now what can I do with.

This right and you're not you're not just saying physical or financial assets.

But maybe no gifting and abilities. Or giftings and abilities relationships. You know if the Lord has blessed you with a wife oh my right like you know how much wonderful value that is is there. But that the king looks upon your marriage.

He who finds a wife finds a good thing obtains favor from the Lord. The king is smiling upon your marriage. How will you make this more beautiful to the Lord. You're raising of your children the the maximizing of all the things that got it you know your house your land your crops your animals whatever it is Jesus king of all of it.

Right. He's the king of all of it. And we if we don't make a listing of everything we have you know by me being thankful for it all it's from him it's for him. So now I need to be trying to maximize it.

And then just being honest I think somewhat sometimes I think that men get into the doldrums and get into stuck in inertia because there's like so many things. And how can I be a good steward of all those at the same time.

And that can be overwhelming. And sometimes there needs to be a bit of focusing and streamlining and saying okay don't don't look at all of it right now focus in here focus in here and try to show where to start.

And then sometimes you're just gonna have to cut some things out of your life that you know if you can't thank God for it why is it there. And that's gonna that's gonna call some of those things out. And then I often think of terms of RPM repair progress and maintenance.

So if all my time is doing maintenance and keeping things up and I'm falling behind so that repair begins to take more and more of a toll on me I'll be making no progress. So I've got to think about how to change up that dynamic.

If I'm trying to maintenance too many things that's gonna be the problem. I don't have to streamline that down so I can actually make some progress and not allow the repairs to overwhelm me. So those are just some practical things to think.

About in the text that you cited from Jeremiah and 20 Jeremiah 29 verses 5 through I believe we got through 7. Mm-hmm. Is he giving them a list of focus on like you just talked about there. Or build houses take wives but get children.

Plant trees take the fruit of the trees. You know it's when are we most happy. Yeah I'm no happiness. Is you know about situational so-and-so. But genuinely I mean when are we most Shalom. At peace everything in order content so on and so forth.

It's when everything that we're involved with is in Shalom with everybody in our life. Everything's in this place. So if I if I can understand that my labor if I can really see in the Lord how my how my labor how my work and so on so forth is directly blessing and benefiting the people that the Lord has put into my life.

And I can do that in thankfulness to him. You know I it you can be really content with that. I think sometimes we get you know with with all this extra information we're being told. You know here's all this information.

And if you don't if you don't have this achievement in your life yet if you're not this over here yet and so on and so forth that can really really be a huge burden. But what if you know what if we're not called to save the world.

God already sent his son for that. Right. And we're part of the world that he's saving. And it's perfectly fine to provide for our children you know a wife and children and in the place that we live it to make the most of it and make it better and launch our children as arrows from our quiver to something even better.

Can we be content with that. I can be joyful in that. You know I don't have to be somebody else or something else. The standard all I have to do is get up in the morning swear fealty to my king thank him for all his blessings and get to work.

You know in the final estimation I think about what Paul's talking about in 1st Corinthians chapter 15. You know when you get to the end of all things it's Christ who gives us the victory. Who has won the victory.

Now to be steadfast and immovable is the calling. That's it's a daily thing. You know we were talking I mentioned in between recording something about hydration being a daily battle. It's not a war that you've done it once and okay.

Well now I'm hydrated. It's a it's a daily thing. I thank God that we can come to him each and every day and be filled with him knowing that it is satisfactory in our service to him. We don't have to worry about rising up or earlier staying into the wee hours of the night and into the morning working for our own sake.

It's for him. I could be asleep. And he's providing food for me. Yeah that's the lesson of the Sabbath. Wasn't it. It was so that you know you don't have to keep living as slaves. Remember the Sabbath day keep it holy.

God made all things and provided all things in six days. You don't have to pretend like you don't have a provider and a creator. And then he gave you what was on those other six days. Right. And then he gave you more.

And then on the Sabbath you know. And then we remember that he has given us his son. Yes how he not. Also with him free to give us all things Christ being the fulfillment of the Sabbath. And we can find a rest in him that God will definitely provide all things for us.

But I think what you said was important. Andrew we have got to come to him time and time again for our daily provision Jesus. It's how you pray you praise the Lord for your daily provision. And you don't worry about tomorrow although there's wisdom in preparing.

You don't worry about tomorrow because the only thing God has asked us to do is to live each day. He's given to us trusting in him for everything. It's a humbling position to be put to be put in as children looking for the provision.

But also it's it's a very anxiety releasing peace filled way of living. And we're going to learn I think as we go to the Word of God and as we as we pray for his provision and of wisdom and opportunities and put into things into practice and listen to one another and seek counsel and all those principles of wisdom and so on.

We're going to learn how to how to maximize and to make progress and do. And it's not going to look like standard answers from a past generation. Right. It's just not going to look like that. You know we do have to take times change.

Yeah we have strategies we take real stock about what is the situation in our day. You know we shouldn't be silversmiths in the age of Solomon. That would be pretty dumb. You know we ought to you know as though it's not saying we put our head in the sand and go into Zen mode and don't think about anything that's not what we're to do but we are called to a daily trust.

So maybe the short answer to the.

Kind of the parts of this question if you're looking for tactics seek counsel for men who know you and you're willing to give them information about your situation and they can help you move forward. Especially if it's somebody who you think has a good principle reading on the current situation.

We you had. You talked about the sons of Issachar. Yes. What was that like two years ago now or like that. Yeah and I'm that's in that vein. You want to find a man like that. Especially when you you trust and trust with your your situation to to bring it.